House Votes to Preserve V-22

On Tuesday, the House voted down a proposed amendment to the recently-passed spending bill that would terminate funding for the V-22 Osprey, a specialized military aircraft constructed at the Boeing facility in Ridley Park.

The V-22 is an incredible machine. It has the ability to take off and land vertically, like a helicopter, but it transforms itself mid-flight and can fly like a turboprop plane. This gives it the ability to fly farther and faster, two critical traits in a military aircraft. For more information about the V-22, click here.

The V-22 has received rave reviews from the Marines who use it in Iraq. Back in May, the Delaware County Times wrote about the V-22’s success on the front lines:

“The current aircraft, he said, is a fourth generation from a project that formulated in the 1950s. Carrying 24 troops, the Osprey takes off, lands and hovers like a helicopter and can reach speeds of 285 knots and a range of a jet.

“When people ask me about it,” Hogan said, “it’s King Kong out there.”

He gave the example of the Osprey carrying President Barack Obama during his campaign from Ramadi, Iraq to Amman, Jordan and back to Al Asad in Iraq without refueling during the approximate 1,000-mile trip.

“If you think of this like a helicopter, you will only get a small percentage of its true potential,” he said.

Carrese agreed, saying that the tiltrotor was conducive for combat search-and-rescue missions because of its speed and range, allowing for casualties to get to critical care faster.

The V-22 is not without controversy. Its development was financially costly, but the greater cost of the V-22 project came during the flight testing of such a radically new aircraft design. Tragically, thirty people were killed in four separate accidents during testing of the V-22.

But now that the initial flaws in the design have been worked out, the V-22 has shown that it plays a critical role in America’s combat operations. And since much of the development cost has already been incurred, the marginal cost of each additional aircraft is much lower. It doesn’t make any sense to cancel the V-22 just as it’s beginning to show its value to our troops.

But not only is the V-22 important militarily, it plays an important role in our local economy as well. The V-22 line employs over 3,000 workers here in Delaware County, and the cancellation of the program would put many of them out of work in an already-depressed job market.

We’ve spent much of this week debating billions of dollars of spending cuts vital to bringing our deficit under control. There’s no doubt that like any huge federal bureaucracy, the Department of Defense is not without inefficiencies. The V-22, however, is a vital piece of military hardware that will save lives overseas and provide good, solid jobs here at home. I’m proud to support it.